August Week 1: Self Love 101

Welcome to August! It is the month of embracing the final carefree days of summer, vacations for many.  As we head into the month, I would like to invite you to think about embracing yourself as we explore this month’s theme of loving yourself down the scale. So often when we struggle with weight, our attempts to actually release weight are focused on our negative beliefs about ourselves:

• I’m fat.
• I’m out of control.
• I‘m lazy.
• My stomach is ugly.
• I can’t look like this, I have to lose weight!

All of the negativity causes stress and inner tension, and guess what happens when we are stressed and tense? We eat! What if, instead of struggling with ourselves and our weight, we focused on actually loving ourselves down the scale?

When we appreciate ourselves and come from a loving place, with a desire to give ourselves the best health and best life we can, it allows our mind to feel relaxed and inspired. It also changes the tone of our weight release from that of a desperate need to lose weight in order to love ourselves to an act of self love.  Our goal is to give ourselves a healthy strong body and practice healthy habits consistently because we deserve it.

This week I would like to focus on some basic, but game-changing, ways to practice self-love.

SELF LOVE 101

1. Practice Mindfulness: When we focus on what we truly want and need in terms of our weight journey, rather than what we think others would want or what society expects we should be, this brings us into our own power. “I deserve to be slim and healthy, not because I have to but because I want to.”
   
   TIP: One way you can do this is by listening to your morning meditation. We give ourselves the time in the morning to think through the kind of day we need to live so that we give ourselves the most self care and nourishment in order to go to bed feeling great. This is a great act of self love that gives your brain the optimal boost to do its best job for you.
2. Give Yourself What You Need (Not What You Want): One of my biggest lessons, when I shifted to loving myself down the scale, was learning that giving myself what I truly needed felt way better in the long run than giving in to impulsive cravings and fleeting desires. By staying focused on what you need, you turn away from automatic behavior patterns that get you into trouble, keep you stuck in the past weight struggle, and lessen self-love. “If I eat this now, will it really allow me to feel good in my body later? Will it really bring me joy and a feeling of well being?”
   
   TIP: One way to help yourself with the afternoon and evening, when impulse control is diminished, is to listen to your 5 minute Afternoon Huddle. It will help you refocus on your intention to treat yourself well and make loving choices, even into the evening.
3. Practice Self Care: You will love yourself more when you take better care of your basic needs. People high in self-love nourish themselves daily through healthy activities, like sound nutrition, exercise, proper sleep, intimacy and healthy social interactions.
   
   TIP: Using your weekly planner and taking the time (it doesn’t take much) to plan your week out in terms of self care, food and exercise. Plans allow you to feel like you are a priority and these few minutes will give you a huge return on investment as far as feeling prepared to face the week with healthy plans.
4. Set boundaries: You'll love yourself more when you set limits or say no to activities that deplete or harm you physically, emotionally and spiritually, or aren't in alignment with who you are.
   
   TIP: This month’s hypnosis session “Self Acceptance” is focused on intentionally letting go of things you no longer need and keeping you focused on the things that really define the true you.
5. Seek Support: Bring the right people into your life. The more you surround yourself with people and food that support your weight release the higher your chances of long term success are. Research shows success doubles when you have group support.
   
   TIP: Join or listen to the recordings of our Monthly Mastery Mastermind calls. These calls provide support and ongoing coaching focused on improving your weight mastery skills. Hearing what others are going through and how they are rising to the challenge is very helpful!

I hope that you have a wonderful and self loving week. I look forward to exploring this topic with you more this month!